


Mistakes of the Past

by OptimusRules



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-10
Updated: 2018-09-10
Packaged: 2019-07-10 12:10:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15949070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OptimusRules/pseuds/OptimusRules
Summary: The Past can sometimes come back and haunt you. For Phil Coulson, it's no different. Haunted by a deadly mistake, Coulson must come to grips with his past, present, and possibly future mistakes as he faces unexpected enemies from his past and the relationship with his "family" will never be the same.





	Mistakes of the Past

At the Superior's hideout, the Superior and his Russians were preparing for an attack by SHIELD. The Superior just got off the phone with AIDA. One of his men ran up to him and spoke in Russian. "The perimeter's defenses just went off." The Superior smirked. "It would seem Agent Coulson and his team have finally arrived."

On the first floor, the nine Russians men readied their weapons for what was coming. Breaking through the door was the Framework version of Grant Ward, guns a blazing. Ward took down four Russians with his guns, before finishing off the last five by nocking one's head and directing his hand to kill the other four. As Ward dropped the Russian, one came from the shadows and was about to shoot Ward. "Left one for you," Ward said to no one in particular. The Russian was confused before he was quaked into the wall. Ward turned around and saw Daisy enter the room. "You know, a few more inches to the right, and you would have quaked me instead." Ward joked. Daisy smiled and walked up to him. "And damage that handsome face? Wouldn't dream of it." The two then kissed.  _"If you two are done fooling around? We have bad guys to capture."_  Coulson said through the comms. Ward nodded and pressed his ear piece. "Copy that," The two headed for the rendezvous point. On the second floor, ten Russians prepared themselves with machine guns.

Outside the hideout, FitzSimmons were in a van. "Mack, Yo-Yo, get ready." Simmons advised. "Power should be going off, now." Fitz pressed a button.

On the second floor, all the lights went out. The Russians then heard a bunch of wooshing. The lights soon came back on, and the Russians found their guns missing. They heard a grunt and saw Mack and Yo-Yo in front of them. "Hi there," Mack greeted before icing all of them. Ward and Daisy made it up to them. Ward shook his head in disappointment. "What?" Mack questioned. Ward turned to Mack "You couldn't leave one for me?" One of the Russians started moving. Mack pointed to that one. "There's one for ya," Ward took Mack's Icer and shot him. Ward huffed. "Not the same,"

Finally, on the third floor, Coulson and May finished off the remaining Russians and had the Superior cornered. Ward, Daisy, Mack, and Yo-Yo entered the room. All their weapons at the ready. "Sir, perimeter secured." Ward reported. Coulson smirked at the Superior. "Well, looks like your story comes to an end, bro." The Superior started laughing. "Is this how people in this world react to loosing?" Ward asked Daisy. "Only the crazy ones." Daisy answered. "You think I lost?!" The Superior demanded. "You have no idea, what's about to begin. Look at you. A perfect team under your command?" Coulson didn't put down his smile. "More like a family working together." The others nodded in agreement. The Superior shook his head. "Oh, cherish it, while it lasts. Because it's all about to disappear. I just wish I would be there to see it." The Superior started sparking. Everyone stepped back. "Algea... is... coming... for... you" The Superior then went offline. The others all looked at each other in confusion. "Is this normal?" Ward finally asked. No one bothered answering his question.

Intro sequence

The Quinjet arrived at the Playground's hanger. Everyone was getting their stuff out, while Ward was still hung up on what the Superior said. "So, a robot madman talks about how a guy named "Algea" is coming for us, and that's just a normal day around here?" "Mm-hmm," "Pretty much," "Yeah," "Yep," "Si," "Mostly on Tuesdays and Fridays," Coulson, Mack, May, Daisy, Yo-Yo, and FitzSimmons all answered, nonjurant. Ward shook his head in amusement and grabbed his gear. He walked off the Quinjet. "You know, it's days like these, that makes me miss fighting HYDRA." As Ward walked out of the hanger, Daisy called to him. "Don’t forget, we have a sparring session." Ward turned around and walked backwards. "Like I would forget a chance to put you in your place." Daisy rolled her eyes as Ward continued to walk out of the hanger. Daisy turned to Coulson. "So, what are we going to do about this, "Algea"?" Coulson shrugged. "Right now, nothing. We don’t have anything on him." "I'll see if I can find anything on him in the tech we recovered from the Superior." Fitz suggested. Coulson nodded. "Get on it. In the meantime, let's continue our jobs like normal." They stared at Coulson. "Well, normalish,"

On a hilltop, a shadowy figure, who we could only see his armored legs, looked out to a city. "This city," The figure spoke in a high pitch sounding distorted voice. "This world. It is in need of my guidance. I will show them the truth. I will show them what SHIELD really stands for." "Excuse me sir," An old man interrupted. "Would you happen to have any change?" The shadowy figure turned around and revealed himself to the old man. The old man was horrified. "What the hell are you?" The figure grabbed his throat, revealing an armored arm. "This world's savior." The old man screamed in agony.

Ward and Daisy were in the training room, getting ready to brawl. "Are you sure you want to get your ass kicked this early?" Ward joked. "I should be asking you that," Daisy said, throwing him boxing gloves. "Says the woman who's lost every match so far." Ward retorted, putting his gloves on. "Those were all warmups." Daisy defended, stretching her legs. "Ten warmups?" Ward questioned. Daisy walked up to Ward. "Know your enemy, right?" She gave Ward a quick jab to the nose. "You telling me big shot Resistance fighter didn’t see that coming?" Daisy teased. Ward chuckled. "You asked for it." The two rotated around each other. Daisy egged Ward to come at her. Ward aimed for her face, but Daisy blocked it and tried to elbow Ward. Ward swiftly dodged and moved out of Daisy's range. Ward nodded. "You're getting better. Anticipating my moves." "I had two good teachers," She then aimed a sidekick to his face. But Ward dodged and prepared to attack, before Daisy grabbed his head. Ward struggled at first, until he got out of her grasp and flipped her to the ground. Daisy quickly got up and flipped him to the ground. Ward got up and the two took a breather for a second before continuing. Ward punched her right shoulder. Daisy tried to do the same, but Ward grabbed her left arm and twisted it. Daisy tried elbowing him, but Ward blocked it. Ward smirked. "Looks like this makes eleven," Daisy exhaled and smiled. "Don’t you always say overconfidence is the enemy?" Daisy then put her left leg between Ward's open legs and tripped him. Before Ward could get up, Daisy pinned him. "One to Eleven," Daisy declared. "I guess you have been learning," Ward admitted. "But take this to your room, and I'll be on top." "Oh, is that so," Daisy flirted. They were about to kiss, before Simmons interrupted them. "I'm so sorry," The two turned to Simmons. "Fitz has found something and requests everyone's presence." Ward and Daisy chuckled at each other. "We'll just have to pick this up later," Daisy said. She got off Ward and the two got up and followed Simmons.

Daisy, Ward, and Simmons entered Coulson's office, where Coulson, May, Fitz, Mack, and Yo-Yo were waiting. Coulson noticed Daisy and Ward's sweaty faces and threw them towels. Ward nodded. "Thank you, sir," Coulson smiled. "She beat you, didn’t she?" Ward refused to answer, while Daisy did. "I owned him!" Everyone except May, chuckled. May just smirked. "Once out of eleven." Ward reminded. "Alright," Coulson said, getting back on topic. "Now that we've humiliated Ward; Fitz, what do you have?" Getting serious, Fitz tapped his tablet. On Coulson's view screen, was what Fitz found while going through the Superior's tech. "So, unfortunately, I was unable to find anything on this "Algea" character. However, after going through all the Superior's tech, I was able to find out where AIDA's hideout is." That got everyone's attention. "As in the AIDA responsible for Director Mace's death?" Ward questioned, determined to avenge Mace. "That AIDA?" Daisy comforted Ward by holding his hand, while Coulson solemnly answered. "Yeah," After a moment of silence, Mack asked "So, where is she?" Fitz zoomed in on the location. "She's located in a warehouse district in Florida." "What's the plan of attack sir?" Simmons asked. Coulson gave the orders. "Mack and Yo-Yo will stay here and man the fort, while me, May, Daisy, FitzSimmons, and Ward go and take down AIDA. Plain and simple." "Nothing about fighting an Inhuman powered robot that wants to kill us all sounds simple." Mack argued.

The team took off in the Quinjet. May was flying, while Ward and Daisy sat on the left side of the Quinjet and Coulson and FitzSimmons sat on the right side. After thirty minutes of awkward silence, Coulson decided to address the elephant in the room. "So, Ward?" Ward broke his concentration and addressed Coulson. "Yes, sir?" "I know this mission might be personal for you." Ward huffed. "That's an understatement, sir. AIDA is the reason Mace is dead. And I plan on killing that android myself." Ward loaded his gun to reinforce his statement. Daisy rubbed Ward's leg in comfort. "Well, not to ruin your pimp up anger, but, AIDA is the reason you’re here in the first place." Coulson reminded. Ward glared at Coulson in disbelief. "I would rather not exist, then have Mace be dead in my place. Sir." After a moment of silence, May spoke up. "Well, on that happy note, we're here."

May landed the Quinjet a mile from AIDA's base. The readied themselves for battle. Coulson and Daisy looked at Ward in concern. "Make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid." Coulson ordered Daisy. She nodded. "Of course," Coulson walked over to FitzSimmons, while Daisy observed Ward getting his weapons ready. "Uh sir?" Fitz spoke out, looking at his tablet of the schematics of AIDA's base. "What's wrong?" Coulson asked, looking over Fitzs' shoulder. "According to my readings, the defenses to AIDA's base are done." That got everyone's attention. "That does not sound like AIDA to be defenseless." Simmons said. "Could just be a trick to lower our guard." May argued, putting her knife in her boot. "May's right." Coulson agreed. "Everyone stay on high alert. So, the plan is, I'll take the lead and..." Before Coulson could finish, Ward walked out of the Quinjet and headed to AIDA's base. The others just stood there in shock. "Or, Ward can disregard my orders and take the lead." Coulson said and followed him with the others close behind.

Ward entered AIDA's base, gun at the ready. He was however shocked at what he saw. The base was decimated. Ward lowered his gun. "All clear. And not what we were expecting." Coulson and the others entered the base and were just as shocked as Ward was. "What happened here?" Simmons asked to no one in particular. "Guys!" Ward called from another room. "You might want to come see this." They entered the room Ward was in. They noticed the room was as destroyed as the one they were just in. Daisy saw Ward looking down at something. "What is it, Ward?" She followed his line of vision. "Oh my god," The others walked over to Ward and Daisy and were stunned at what they were looking at. "Bloody hell," Fitz muttered. On the floor was a dead AIDA. "Good riddance," Simmons uttered. Everyone looked at her. "We were all thinking it," She defended. May nodded in agreement. After getting over AIDA's dead body, Daisy questioned, "Who could have done this?" Coulson turned to her. "The real question is 'what' could have done this?" Ward was examining the room and saw a hospital bed, and something written on the life support system. "Well, I found a clue to another mystery we're investigating." The others walked over to him and Ward pointed at what the life support system said. "Project: Algea" May rolled her eyes in annoyance, while Coulson crossed his arms and blankly said "So, the Algea that Ivanov told us about turns out to be AIDA's little science project, only for it to turn on her and kill her." Coulson turned to Ward, Daisy, and FitzSimmons. "Am I leaving anything out?" They shook their heads in unison. Coulson nodded with his usual smile. "Great," "Hey Fitz!" May called out to the engineer. Fitz walked over to May. "What is it?" May pointed at a camera. "You think you can recover any data from that surveillance camera?" Fitz examined the state of the camera and answered. "I can certainly try. I just need to get my laptop out of the Quinjet."

After getting his laptop, the team gathered around Fitz as he worked his magic. "How much longer Fitz?" Coulson asked. "Just another second. And... got it!" Fitz pressed enter and the team saw the surveillance footage. The sound was out of whack and they only saw the back of AIDA, but not what was on the hospital bed. "Can we get a better angle?" Daisy asked. "Unfortunately, this was the only camera in the room, so we can only see this angle." Fitz answered. Screams were heard from the thing in the hospital bed, as AIDA examined it. Ward winched. "I'd hate to be that guy." "You will be the perfect weapon against SHIELD." They heard AIDA say. "Once you're finished, all of SHIELD, especially Fitz, will bow before me!" AIDA started laughing sadistically. Ward leaned over to May. "Before she was Madam HYDRA, was she always this, crazy?" "More or less so," May answered. "Fitz, is there any way we can speed this up to AIDA's last moments?" Simmons asked. "I don’t want to look at her longer then I have to." "Right," Fitz agreed. He sped up the video to the last moments before the camera was destroyed. They saw AIDA help the thing up, still unable to see what the creature looked like, and directed him to something off camera. Because the sound was whacky, they couldn’t hear what AIDA was talking to the creature about. They then witnessed a hand grab AIDA's throat and snap her neck. The creature then threw AIDA into the camera, and that was the last of the footage. After a moment of silence, Ward asked. "So, we just traded one crazed psychopath for another?" Coulson nodded his head and gazed at him. "That's SHIELD for ya?" A few feet away from the group, a hidden camera zoomed in on them.

At an undisclosed location, Algea stared at the group in the shadows. He started to growl at the sight of Coulson. His armored right-hand smashed the screen and threw it to the ground. "Your end is near Phillip J. Coulson!"

The Quinjet landed back at the Playground, where the team was greeted by Mack and Yo-Yo. "Good to see you guys made it back." Mack said. "And AIDA?" "It's a long story," FitzSimmons said. Ward was on his way to his quarters, when Coulson stopped him. "Agent Ward. I would like a moment in my office." Without waiting for Ward's reply, Coulson walked to his office. Ward stared at the others before following suit. Daisy became nervous.

Entering Coulson's office, Ward watched Coulson stare out the window. "This must be tough for you, huh?" Coulson asked, not looking away from the window. "Sir?" Coulson turned around and continued. "Being here, in this office. When the only man you knew who was in it was Mace." Ward sadly nodded. Coulson sat down on his desk. "He was like a father to you. He trained you. Look after you when SHIELD fell. Made you his second-in-command of the Resistance." "What does this have to do with..." "Don’t interrupt me Agent Ward!" Coulson snapped. Ward was taken aback by the outburst. Coulson continued. "The point I'm making is the man Mace trusted was not the man out in the field today. You disobeyed my orders to go after AIDA alone because of a personal vendetta." "That psychopath was responsible for Mace's death!" "And I understand that. You're not the only one who sought revenge." Ward calmed down and nodded. "Rosalind" Coulson nodded and stood up. "I, let my emotions cloud my judgement and I hunted down and murdered our Grant Ward. Releasing Hive on the Earth. And I don’t want you to go down that same path." Ward nodded in understanding. "Grant. I want to trust you. I want to believe that you aren't the Grant Ward that betrayed our trust. Because if we are to have any hope of stopping this Algea, we'll need all the agents we can get." Ward smiled. "Yes sir" He held out his hand. Coulson took and shook. Ward walked toward the exit and said, "Oh and sir?" Coulson turned to Ward. "Tell May that she did not train Daisy well in stealth." Ward opened the door and stumbling behind it was Daisy. She smiled in embarrassment.

It has been 5 months since AIDA's death and there has been no news of Algea. In the meantime, General Talbot has sent a U.S representative to improve relations between SHIELD and the government.

Coulson was finishing up paperwork in his office when Ward entered with a tablet. "Sir," Coulson looked up. "General Talbot's representative will be arriving shortly." Coulson put his pen down and got up. "Good. What do you have on her?" Ward pulled the information of the representative on his tablet to the big screen. A picture of a woman in her early 30's and brunet hair (Katie Cassidy) appeared with information beside it. Ward described her. "Lieutenant Zoey Laurel Smith. Graduated from Massachusetts University at age 21. Recruited into the Air Force shortly after. Top marks by all her peers. Works directly with General Talbot. Sir, it says that she earned the cross medal during the Chitauri invasion." That got Coulson's attention. "Shows she's not afraid to get her hands dirty. I'm looking forward to meeting her." Coulson noticed Ward's thoughtful stare at Zoey's picture. "Something wrong Agent Ward?" Ward came out of his thoughts and glanced back at Coulson. "Sorry, sir. It's just, I feel like I've seen her before."

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The team stood in the hanger as the Quinjet carrying Zoey landed. The ramp to the Quinjet lowered to reveal Zoey, who was wearing business attire, accompanied by two SHIELD agents. She walked up to Coulson shook his hand. "Director Coulson. It is a pleasure to put a face to the name. General Talbot has spoken a lot about you." Coulson smirked. "Has he? Hopefully most of it was good." After the two finished shaking hands, Coulson introduced Zoey to the rest of the team. "Lieutenant Smith, may I introduce agents Melinda May, Daisy Johnson, Grant Ward, Leo Fitz, Jemma Simmons, Alphonso Mackenzie, and Elena Rodriguez." "So good to meet you all," Zoey said, shaking their hands. When she got to Ward, he asked. "Excuse me, lieutenant. But have we met before?" Zoey, however, gave Ward the stink eye and followed Coulson out of the hanger. The others stared at Ward. "I guess not,"

Coulson started the tour with the science wing. "So, this is where we, you guessed it, do science stuff. Truth be told I don’t understand half of it, but we are able to get advancements in many forms: Alien Biology, Robotics, Prosthetics." Coulson showed Zoey his prosthetic hand. "I heard it can make a shield." She smirked at Coulson. "Don’t you think that's a bit overkill?" "I thought the Director of SHIELD should have a shield." Zoey's phone rang. "Excuse me for a moment," Coulson excused her. While Zoey was talking, Daisy came up to him. "So, how's the tour going?" "We just started. Told her about our advancements." Daisy smiled. "You bragged about your shield, didn’t you?" Coulson just smiled at Daisy. Zoey soon returned and put her phone back in her pocket. "Sorry about that. That was my brother." "Not a problem," Coulson dismissed. "I believe you remember Agent Johnson from when you arrived?" Daisy held out her hand to shake. Zoey accepted. "Yes. Though she has quite the reputation already. There's a lot of buzz about 'Quake'." Daisy blushed. "Thank you. But I prefer Daisy." "Of course." She turned back to Coulson. "Shall we continue." Coulson directed her out of the science wing.

While Coulson was giving Zoey a tour, the rest of the team, except for Daisy, were in the lounge. May, FitzSimmons, Mack, and Yo-Yo were at the bar, while Ward was on the coach with a beer. Daisy soon walked in. "Well, Lieutenant Smith seems nice," Mack was getting a beer out of the fridge as he said, "Yeah. Makes you wonder how she ended up working with Talbot on a daily basis." The others chuckled at Mack's joke, except for Ward, who seemed distracted. The others took note of this. "Something the matter Grant?" Yo-Yo asked. Ward didn’t react. "Hey yo, Ward!" Daisy yelled, throwing a nut at his head. Ward turned around in response. "What?" "What's going on?" Daisy asked. "You seem out of it." "Well, was it just me, or did the lieutenant seem to not be my biggest fan?" The team, unconvincingly, tried to act like they didn’t notice. "Well?", "I wouldn’t say biggest.", "Maybe?", "It didn’t seem like that.", "Kind of.", "Yes,' May finally said. The others glared at her as she continued to drink her beer as if she said nothing. Ward huffed and put his hands over his face. "Maybe she heard about the real Grant Ward and, I don’t know, doesn’t trust you." Fitz suggested, who was on his computer. "That's how I felt." Simmons agreed. Daisy glared at the two scientists. "Not helping." "No, they're right," Ward said. "I always knew that I would have to gain peoples' trust back. But still, she looks familiar." As Mack was about to drink out of his beer, Yo-Yo grabbed it and suggested. "Maybe you met her in the Framework?" Ward shrugged. "Maybe that's it. But I'm sure I would've remembered seeing her." Daisy sat next to him. "Well don’t worry. I'm sure it'll come back eventually. In the meantime, try to get on her good side." Before Ward could respond, Fitz's computer started beeping. "Guys!" Fitz exclaimed. "I found something on Algea!" They all immediately rushed over to Fitz. "What is it, Turbo?" Mack asked. Fitz was still typing. "Well, with Daisy's help, I was able to create an algorithm that would pick up any chatter of Algea so we could track his position. And it looks like we got a location." They cheered as Simmons kissed Fitz on the lips. Ward patted his back. "Great job, Fitz." "Thanks," The two gave each other a friendly smile, before May said. "I'll go tell Coulson." She walked out.

Coulson was finishing up his tour. "So that's about it. Science wing, training area, armory." Coulson and Zoey walked into his office. "And this is my office." Zoey looked around. "It's amazing how well you rebuilt it after it's destruction." Coulson shrugged. "To us, having this base attacked is just another Tuesday." Zoey noticed a lot of Mace's stuff were still around. "I see you salvaged what remained of Jeffrey Mace's materials." She pointed to the poster that said 'Suspect it. Report it' "Even that?" Coulson took a breath and walked over to her. "Jeffrey Mace was a good man. I just wished I realized that a lot sooner. Maybe then," Coulson picked up the picture of Mace in Vienna. "he might still be here." Zoey frowned. "I'm sorry for pushing." Deciding to change the subject, Coulson pointed to Zoey's medal. "So, I heard you got that cross medal from the Chitauri invasion." Zoey dismissed it. "It wasn’t a big deal. I was in New York with General Talbot when it happened. While he was manning the politics, I decided to help out on the streets." "You showed a lot of strength," Coulson complimented. Zoey shrugged. "When you grow up with three brothers fighting over one bathroom, taking on aliens is a piece of cake." After a moment of silence, Zoey said, "Well, everything here seems in order. So, I'll report back to General Talbot and inform him he can lay of the nukes. For now." The two smiled, and Zoey walked off to her Quinjet.

As the Quinjet was leaving, Coulson watched. May walked up to him. "So, how was the tour?" "I like her," Coulson answered. "She would've made quite the SHIELD agent." "We finally have a lead on Algea." Getting serious, Coulson said, "Get the team ready."

May landed the Quinjet in front of an abandoned warehouse. The team, made of Coulson, May, Daisy, Ward, Mack, and Yo-Yo, exited, with Coulson taking the lead. “Fitz are you sure this is where your algorithm picked up Algea?” Coulson asked. Fitz double checked his tablet and nodded. “Yeah. According to this, Algea’s main focus is here.” “Well then,” Ward loaded his gun. “Let’s not waste time.” “Remember Grant, on my signal.” Coulson reminded Ward. He nodded. “Yes, sir,” They entered the warehouse.

Inside, the team spread out, only to find nothing. May turned to Fitz. “Fitz?” Fitz looked at his tablet again and was confused. “I don’t understand. It says this is where Algea was focused on.” “Well maybe your little gizmo is broken.” Yo-Yo suggested. “It’s not broken!” Ward called out from another room. The team followed his voice to find him and Daisy staring at wall full of pictures of Coulson. Coulson sighed. “This again?” “Coulson, this is more than Ivanov ever had as an obsession.” Daisy said. “Some of these pictures are from when you were a teenager.” Mack finished the sweep. “Well, if Algea was here, he isn’t now.” “Looks like Algea led us on a wild goose chase.” May realized.

Leaving the warehouse, a shot was heard. The team quickly dodged it. Ward surveyed the area and saw the sniper on the roof. “There he is!” “I’m on it!” Daisy exclaimed and quaked herself to the roof. The sniper started to run, only for Daisy to land on him. She turned him over. “Who are you?” The sniper smiled. “A follower of the great Algea.” Daisy touched her comm. “Coulson. I think we finally have a lead.”

After returning to the Playground, the follower was taken to the interrogation room.

FitzSimmons, were in the science wing, looking over the equipment they took from the follower and the collage of Coulson. Coulson entered. “Anything?” “His phone is wiped,” Fitz revealed. “And there really isn’t anything unusual about the sniper rifle. “And there’s not fingerprint matches for him.” Simmons revealed. “I’m afraid the man is a ghost.” “Keep searching,” Coulson ordered. “We’ll perhaps learn more after Ward and Daisy’s interrogation of this guy.”

Ward and Daisy started their interrogation of the follower. Daisy was standing with her hands on the table while Ward walked around the follower. "We know you serve Algea." Daisy began. "Where is he?" "Beyond your reach," The follower answered. "Who is he?" Ward demanded. "He is a god," The follower insisted. "You'll see." Daisy moved out of the way, so Ward could sit in the interrogator chair. "It is only a matter of time before we find and stop Algea." Ward said. "Make it easier on yourself." The follower started laughing manically. "Stop him? You don’t even know what Lord Algea wants." "From what we found in the warehouse, he has as much of an obsession with Phil Coulson as Ivanov did." Daisy informed. "So, my guess is, it has something to do with Coulson." The follower turned to Daisy. "Oh, you have no idea. The people who serve Algea, are all ones who were betrayed by Phil Coulson and SHIELD." "Phil Coulson is a good man." Ward defended. "He's sacrificed everything for SHIELD. Gave me a second chance even after everything the other Ward did." The follower smirked at Ward's innocence. "Oh, you don’t know the full story of Coulson's second chance belief, do you?" When neither Ward nor Daisy said anything, the follower continued. "During your precious team's first year together, Coulson made an effort to give people second chances. Such as Mike Peterson and Akela Amador." The follower pointed to Daisy. "And even you, after you betrayed them to your Rising Tide boyfriend." For the first time during this conversation, Daisy was shocked. "But after Grant Ward betrayed them, poof. Coulson's second chance belief didn’t equate to him. Then, a two years later, Coulson was more than willing to give Carl Creel a second chance. A man, who like Mr. Peterson and Ms. Amador were forced to do horrible things. So, it seems that Coulson only believes in giving second chances to people who were never on the wrong side. But isn’t willing to take the time to someone who was lost. Lord Algea was one of the unlucky ones. So, are you honestly going to tell me that if it weren't for your girl over here, Coulson wouldn’t have thrown you away like yesterday's garbage?" When Ward didn’t respond, Daisy did. "We're done here," The two then left the interrogation room. After they left, the follower looked at the surveillance camera and waved, knowing Coulson was watching.

Coulson and May watched the follower wave on the big screen in his office. Coulson turned it off. "Well he seems like a fun character," May quipped. Ward and Daisy entered. Ward and Coulson gave each other a look before getting down to business. "So, from your interrogation, what do we know?” Coulson began. “Besides, that he’s a walking coco puffs cereal box; not much.” Daisy quipped. Coulson turned to Ward. “Agent Ward? What do you think?” Avoiding eye contact with Coulson, he answered. “From what I gathered, this guy truly believes in Algea. No signs he’s afraid of him. Or that he’s being forced to obey. But what concerns me, is with the way he was talking, Algea seems to have access to your past before I joined.” “Which would explain how he knew about Mike, Amador, Miles, and Creel.” Daisy agreed. May chimed in. “But the events he chose were, as he said, times when Coulson gave someone a second chance.” “Except for Grant Ward.” Ward mumbled. After an awkward moment of silence, Coulson continued. “So, this Algea is trying to call me out.” “I’ll go see what FitzSimmons found in their examination of this guy’s belongings.” Daisy said. Coulson nodded in agreement. “So, until we can get anywhere with our new friend, we’re in a holding pannier.” Ward said. “It would appear so,” Coulson agreed. “Great. If that’s all sir?” Coulson nodded to Ward. Ward left the office without another word. Daisy followed him out with Coulson and May staring at each other in silence.

“Grant!” Daisy called out, catching up to him. “Hey, don’t let what that nutjob said get to you. Coulson knows you’re nothing like the other Ward and would’ve given you a chance regardless if I were here or not.” The two stopped at an intersection of the hallway. Ward took a breath. “Daisy. I would be lying if I didn’t say that sometimes I feel like Coulson doesn’t trust me the same way he does the rest of you. That he holds me in the same regard as the other guy.” Daisy shook her head in disapproval. “If that were true, you would be locked up in Vault D where he was.” Ward considered this. “Maybe you’re right. I just need some time to think this over.” “How about a sparring session after I see FitzSimmons?” Daisy offered, cheekfully. “Another chance to put you on your ass? With pleasure.” Ward teased and kissed her forehead. He headed to the training room with Daisy calling out, “Last time I checked, I whooped your ass the last time!” “I can’t hear you!” Ward teased. Daisy shook her head in amusement and went to see what FitzSimmons found.

Coulson entered the interrogation room. The follower smiled. “I was wondering when you were going to show.” Coulson smiled back. “i don’t appreciate trying to undermine one of my agents.” “Is that what Mr. Ward is to you?” Coulson slammed his fists on the table. “Grant Ward is one of the most honorable men I know.” The follower chuckled. “I bet that was hard for you to stomach.”

In the science wing, FitzSimmons were examining what they found in the follower’s hideout. Daisy walked up to them. “So, anything juicy?” “Besides the collage of Director Coulson, and a few weapons; nothing.” Fitz said. “It would seem the hideout was emptied before we got there.” “But if that were true, why would the follower remain behind?” Simmons questioned. “Because he wanted to be captured,” Daisy realized. “Well, if he wanted to get captured to alert Algea where we are, he’s out of luck.” Fitz assured. “We swiped him of all electronic devices. And we scanned him for any tracking devices. This Algea’s probably not as smart as his follower makes him out to be.” Daisy wasn’t too sure.

In a QuadCopter, the remainders of Ivanov’s Russians were preparing for battle. In the cockpit, one of the pilots said, “Sir, we’re coming up on the target.” Walking up to them was former Real SHIELD agent Tomas Calderon. “Good. I've been looking forward to this.” He loaded his pistol and looked at the view of the Playground.

Coulson slammed his fists on the table. “I have enough of your simple-minded loyalty to this, Algea! He’s not a God. He’s just another villain of the month.” The follower leaned closer. “Algea is so much more than the people you are used to fighting. He has no interest in world domination or satisfying his own desires like John Garrett or AIDA. He wants to prove what you, and SHIELD, really stand for. And he will. He sees all. He knows all. He will destroy you. And everything that you love.” Coulson was on the verge of losing his temper. The follower leaned back in his chair. “I just wish I'd be there to see it.” Coulson became confused.

Calderon, still onboard the QuadCopter, looked at his men and nodded to them. He pulled out a detonator and pressed it.

A beeping noise was heard from the follower. The follower laughed. He smiled at the confused Coulson. “Boom” The follower pushed his chair to the wall and, before Coulson could react, blew up. Knocking Coulson out and creating a giant hole in the wall.

Daisy and FitzSimmons felt the explosion in the science wing.

Ward felt the explosion in the training room. “What the hell?!”

Mack and Yo-Yo felt the explosion in the hallway.

May felt the explosion in Coulson’s office.

Armed men entered the base through the hole. One spotted the woozy Coulson and aimed his gun at him. Another stopped him. “No. Algea wants him alive.” The man turned to two of his men. “You two. Get the hatch open. The rest, with me.” Although still a bit hazy, Coulson recognized some of the men as former HYDRA agents. The men then left the interrogation room and started their attack on the Playground.

The two men made it to the hanger’s doors, only to see two SHIELD agents guarding it. Before the agents could react, they were shot dead. The men entered the hanger and opened the hatch.

Entering the hanger was the QuadCopter. Inside, the Russians were armed and readied to lay siege to the Playground once the QuadCopter’s doors opened. Calderon was in the middle of them and smiled. “This is gonna be fun.”

Ward walked out of the training room, only to bump into an unknown individual with an automatic weapon. Ward smirked, “Hey,” Before the man could kill Ward, he knocked him out and grabbed his weapon. He shook his head. “It’s going be one of those days.” Ward bent down to examine the man and spotted a familiar symbol to his SHIELD allies. “Watchdogs?” Ward heard footsteps and saw five more soldiers with the Watchdog symbol. Ward grunted. “I hate today!” Ward began firing the automatic weapon, killing one of the Watchdogs. As they fired back, Ward hid behind a pillar. As they reloaded their guns, Ward ran to the next pillar, shooting at them. After two closed in, Ward elbowed one to the ground, and grabbed the other by the hand he was holding his gun. He aimed the man’s hand to the third Watchdog and shot him dead. He proceeded to shoot the man he was holding in the head and take his gun. After taking a breath, Ward fled the hallway, with the last two Watchdogs on his tail.

Ward managed to make it to the kitchen, where he hid behind a counter. The last two Watchdogs shot at the counter until Ward came out. Ward pulled out his spare gun, got up, and shot at the men. Unfortunately, the men took cover behind two pillars. Needing to reload, Ward took cover behind the counter. The men came out from hiding and continued firing. They each took a corner to cut Ward off. As one was about to reach the middle, Ward quickly shot him in the heart. Knowing Ward’s position, the last Watchdog fired on him. Ward picked up his spare gun and ran and fired at the Watchdog. After a quick-fire fight, the last Watchdog went down. After the cost was clear, Ward took deep breaths, until he heard movement. He aimed his guns at the incoming target. “Ward, Ward, don’t shoot. It’s us.” It was Mack and Yo-Yo, raising their hands in surrender. Ward lowered his guns and motioned to the two dead Watchdogs. “Is this, a normal day for you guys?” They lowered their hands. “Usually once a year.” Yo-Yo joked. Ward looked around. “Where’s Daisy?”

Ten of the armed men entered the science wing searching for any SHIELD agents. Suddenly, two were quaked to a wall. The others turned to where the quake came from and saw Daisy in her quake pose. They aimed their guns at her but were surprised at her smile. Two more men were shot dead from the back. It was revealed to be Fitz and Simmons. The three took cover as the remaining six shot up the place. As they started to reload, Daisy ran up and took down two more by side kicking one in the face and shooting the other in the head. “I would lower the gun if I were you,” Daisy turned around and saw the last two holding FitzSimmons at gunpoint. Daisy kept her gun aimed at their heads. “Do it!” The man demanded. Obeying, Daisy lowered her gun to the ground and raised her hands in surrender. “You know, Lord Algea wants you alive, but I'm sure after everything, he would love you three dead.” Daisy was confused. “What did we do?” “You’ll never find out,” The man was about to shoot Fitz in the head before he started feeling intense pain in his chest. As did the one holding Simmons hostage. They fell to the ground and were unable to breath. The trio were confused what was going on. “What is happening to them?” Simmons questioned. “It looks like they’re having a heart-attack.” Fitz theorized. One reached to the three for help, before he died. The other soon followed. “That was bizarre,” Simmons said. Daisy bent down and examined their bodies. “What are you looking for Daisy?” Fitz asked. Daisy took off one of their shirts and found what she was looking for. A Heart Stopper. Daisy bit her lip in remembrance. She took it off and showed it to FitzSimmons. “What is that?” Simmons asked. “This is what Mike used on Ward to stop his heart when he had me prisoner.” Daisy answered. “How did they get their hands on it?” Fitz asked. While they were talking, the soldier Daisy side kicked got up and prepared to shoot the unexpected agents. Only to be shot in the heart. The trio noticed this and turned around to see May pointing the gun at the now dead soldier. “We need to move,” was all May said.

Calderon was leading the Russians through the Playground, killing any agents they saw. After killing another agent, Calderon turned to the Russian in charge. “Keep the fighting on this side of the base. While I get what we came for.” He then left the Russians to deal with the SHIELD agents.

Calderon ended up at Coulson’s office. He grinned and entered. He put on black gloves and searched the office for something. “Come on. Come on. Where is it?” Then, an idea formed in his head. He picked up the picture of Mace in Vienna and smashed it. He bent down to examine a hard-drive that was in the broken frame and smiled. “Hello gorgeous,”

Ward, Mack, and Yo-Yo were assisting agents on the far side of the Playground. Yo-Yo sped and grabbed the guns of the men and it became easy picking, until more came from the right and Ward ran out of bullets. “I’m out!” Mack’s shotgun stopped. “Same here” Before Yo-Yo could grab the guns, they were all quaked away. Coming into view was Daisy, FitzSimmons, and May. Daisy smiled at Ward and ran up to him. “Thank god,” She muttered. The two gave each other a big hug. May walked up to Mack. “What took you so long?” He joked. Ignoring his joke, May asked, “Where’s Coulson?” “He isn’t with you?” Ward questioned. Daisy let go and said, “No. We thought he was with you.” Before they could continue, more men showed up. Daisy handed Ward a gun. “Figured you’d might need one.” Ward smirked, and the team continued to fight.

Calderon pulled out a laptop. He then plugged the hard-drive in and started downloading unknown information from it. He smiled at the results. “Algea’s going to love this.” Calderon activated his comlink. “Everyone get back to the QuadCopter. We got what we came for.” He unplugged the hard-drive.

The team continued to fight. As the fighting went on, Ward said, “Some of these guys are Watchdogs!” Quaking a man into the wall, Daisy replied, “I recognize some of Ivanov’s Russians.” May flipped a man to the ground and broke his neck. “And this guy was a former HYDRA agent!” “So, we have everyone we’ve ever battled here?!” Fitz exclaimed, shooting a Russian coming at Simmons and vise verso. “Pretty much!” Mack yelled back, hitting one with his axe. Everyone was then surprised when the men retreated. “Is  _that_  normal?” Ward questioned. “No,” Daisy answered, just as confused as Ward was. “We have to find Coulson!” May ordered.

Calderon exited Coulson’s office with the laptop. Two Watchdogs ran up to him. “Get this to the Copter!” Calderon ordered. He handed the laptop to one of the men. “I’ll catch up,” The two men followed his orders and left. Calderon turned back to Coulson’s office and threw two grenades in. He walked off as the explosion went off.

Coulson finally got up and left the interrogation room. As he went to find the others, Calderon’s voice was heard. “Here I was heading back to the Copter,” Coulson turned around and was surprised to see him here. “And you offer yourself up to me.” “Calderon? You’re in charge of all this? You’re Algea?” Calderon shook his head in amusement. “Like always Coulson, you’re ten steps behind.” Calderon secretly pressed a button behind his back. “Algea and I have a mutual understanding.” “But you were a SHIELD agent!” Coulson exclaimed, disgusted. “Gonzales, Mack, and Bobbi trusted you.” The two started walking circles around each other as Calderon continued. “Yeah. And after your girl, Quake, shoved that branch into my shoulder-”

_A flashback showed Daisy, still known as Skye, quake a big branch into Calderon’s right shoulder in the forest where the Retreat was._

“I was put in critical condition. After the surgery, I was too injured to continue. So, Gonzales let me go. And then, I heard that Mack, Bobbi, and the rest of our SHIELD joined you. The man who caused so much death and destruction. That’s when I realized that SHIELD was truly dead. So, when Algea came and offered me a chance to get revenge on you and the rest of you mindless followers, I more than willing accepted.” “You’re a sell out,” Coulson insulted. Calderon shook his head in thought. “I’m a survivor,” Coulson aimed his gun at him. “Can you survive this?” Calderon was unfazed. “You want to shoot me?” Calderon offered himself up. “Do it. Right here.” Coulson hesitated. Calderon nodded. “You see that’s your problem, Coulson. It’s always been  _your_  problem.” Calderon then aimed his gun at Coulson. Coulson quickly shot at his hand, causing the gun to drop. The two started circling each other again. “You think you’re so tough, ‘cause you died?” Calderon gave Coulson a jab to the face. “It only made you weak.” Coulson tried to return the punch, but Calderon ducked, grabbed Coulson by the shirt and punched him twice in the face before Coulson got out his grip and dodged the third punch. He finally landed a blow to Calderon and did a jump kick. The two then threw punches at each other, both blocking each punch before Calderon nailed a punch in the chest, face, and chest again. Coulson went to tackle Calderon, only for him to grab Coulson underneath his arm and hold him there. Coulson flipped them on the ground. But before Coulson could get to his feet, Calderon twisted his right arm. Calderon then tried to once again hit Coulson in the face, only for Coulson to use his free arm and punch him in the stomach. This allowed Coulson to get free of Calderon’s grip and nail a big blow to his face. Blood came out of Calderon’s mouth. Getting up, Calderon continued. Coulson aimed a punch with his left hand, but Calderon intercepted it and punched him in his arm’s weak spot. The two then held on to each other until Coulson jabbed Calderon in the ribs. Calderon returned the favor and punched him twice in the ribs, before he punched him in the face again. As Coulson recovered, Calderon gave a serious blow to Coulson, who fell to the ground. Coulson spit out blood. Calderon came up and grabbed him by the back of his shirt. “Come on,” Calderon said. He threw Coulson into a pillar. Coulson looked up at the serious Calderon. “Algea taught me your moves.” He then tried a side kick before Coulson grabbed Calderon by the leg and tripped him to the ground. “Not all of them,” Coulson got on top of Calderon and repeatedly punched him in the chest and face. He then got off the defeated Calderon and took deep breaths.

The rest of the team finally arrived and saw the aftermath. Mack was shocked to see Calderon. “Tomas?” Coulson walked closer to Calderon. “It’s over,” Calderon seemed amused. “Over? You have idea, what’s about to begin.” The ground around them started to shake. A white light started moving around the area. The others were confused. Mack grabbed Calderon’s gun and aimed it at him. “What’s happening you son of a bitch?!” Calderon wasn’t afraid of Mack. “The end,” Mack and the others were then swiftly knocked off the ground, leaving only Coulson. Suddenly, Coulson found himself pinned against the wall by an armored arm. Coulson looked up from the arm to see a completely armored individual with light blue eyes. Calderon smiled in satisfaction. Coulson struggled in the individual’s grip. “Who are you?” “Algea.” It revealed in his distorted voice. “The God of Pain.”

<http://cdn.collider.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/the-flash-shade-savitar-image.png>

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry about the Https links. I'm still figuring things out. They are links to what Zoey and Algea look like.


End file.
